



^ 



^^'ji'&Sr^} HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES {^^No^l?!?^ 

EDWIN A. MERRITT, Jr. 

( Late a Representative from New York ) 

MEMORIAL ADDRESSES ^ 

DELIVERED IN THE -Xi 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND THE SENATE 
OF THE UNITED STATES 

SIXTY-THIRD CONGRESS 



Proceedings in the House Proceedings in the Senate 

February 7, 191S December 7, 1914 



PREPARED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF 
THE JOINT COMMITTEE ON PRINTING 




] L'-'2.L2.L(^ 



WASHINGTON 
1916 



B^6 6 4 




D. of D. 
MAR 28 1916 



Oo 

5^ 



TABLE OF CONTENTS 



Page. 

Proceedings in the House of Representatives 5-27 

Prayer by Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D 5, 9 

Memorial addresses by — 

Mr. William M. Calder, of New York II 

Mr. Edwin S. Underbill, of New York 14 

Mr. Irvine L. Lenroot, of Wisconsin 16 

Mr. John J. Fitzgerald, of New York 17 

Mr. Luther W. Mott, of New York 19 

Mr. J. Hampton Moore, of Pennsylvania 21 

Mr. Samuel Wallin, of New York 22 

Mr. James S. Parker, of New York 24 

Proceedings in the Senate 29 

Exercises in the Assembly Chamber of the New York State 

Capitol -- 31-57 

Prayer by Rev. W. J. Hamilton, of Potsdam, N. Y 32 

Memorial addresses by — 

Mr. Thaddeus C. Sweet, Speaker of the Assembly. 34 

Mr. Frank L. Young 36 

Mr. Alfred E. Smith 44 

Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr 47 

Public memorial meeting in village hall, Potsdam, N. Y 59-65 

Tributes by — 

Mr. Clarence S. Ferris 59 

Dr. F. L. Dewey 60 

Mr. Edward A. Everett 61 

Mr. Harry M. Ingram 62 

Mr. John L. Brown 64 

Mr. Sylvester Nicolette 64 

Resolutions adopted by the bar of Potsdam, N. Y 65 



[3] 




■^ 9 # ■> 



HON. EDWIN A.MERRITT 



DEATH OF HON. EDWIN A. MERRITT, JR. 



Proceedings in the House 

Monday, December 7, 1914. 

This being the day fixed bj- the Constitution for the 
annual meeting of the Congress of the United States, the 
House of Representatives of the Sixty-third Congress met 
in its Hall at 12 o'clock noon for its third session, and was 
called to order by the Speaker, Hon. Champ Clark, a 
Representative from the State of Missouri. 

The Chaplain, Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D., offered the 
following prayer : 

O Thou who art from everlasting to everlasting, the be- 
ginning and the end; creating, re-creating, life-giving, life- 
sustaining Potentate; our God and our Father, our hearts 
turn to Thee at this, the beginning of the end of the 
Sixty-third Congress, for we realize that without Thee 
nothing is strong, nothing enduring; that if its work lives 
and bears fruit, it must be in consonance with the eternal 
laws which Thou hast ordained. 

Inspire, we pray Thee, the heart of each Member of this 
House with patriotic zeal and fervor; give wisdom and 
strength to its Speaker, that with characteristic candor 
and courage he may continue to preside with justice and 
equity in its deliberations. Let Thy favor be upon our 
President and his counselors, that the affairs of state may 
be wisely administered at home and abroad. May the 
people uphold and sustain him in solving the problems 
which confront us in the present crisis. May those who 
are called to sit in judgment upon the laws enacted, 

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Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

national and international, be guided by wisdom, that 
their judgments may be true and righteous altogether. 
Continue us, we beseech Thee, in peace among ourselves 
and with all nations. 

And now, O God our Father, our hearts touched by 
the death of one of the Members of this House since we 
last met, we pray for Thy comfort to sustain us and those 
to whom he was nearest and dearest. Teach us how to 
live now, that we may be prepared to live in the larger 
life which Thou hast in store for Thy children, and all 
praise shall be Thine, in the name of the world's great 
Redeemer. Amen. 

Mr. Payne. Mr. Speaker, it becomes my sad duty to 
announce to the House the death of my colleague, Hon. 
Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., which occurred on Friday last at 
his home in Potsdam, N. Y. I offer the following resolu- 
tions, and at some future time I shall ask the House to 
set aside a daj' to be devoted to the delivery of eulogies 
upon the life, character, and public services of the 
deceased. 

The Speaker. The Clerk will report the resolutions. 

The Clerk read as follows : 

House resolution 663 

Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of 
the death of Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., a Representative from 
the State of New York. 

Resolved, That a committee of the House, with such Members 
of the Senate as may be joined, be appointed to attend the 
funeral. 

Resolved, That the Sergeant at Arms of the House be authorized 
and directed to take such steps as may be necessary for carrying 
out the provisions of these resolutions, and that the necessary 
expenses in connection therewith be paid out of the contingent 
fund of the House. 

Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the 
Senate and transmit a copy thereof to the family of the deceased. 

[6] 



Proceedings in the House 



The Speaker announced the following committee: 

Mr. Fitzgerald, Mr. Payne, Mr. Brown of New York, 
Mr. O'Leary, Mr. Wilson of New York, Mr. Dale, Mr. 
Maher, Mr. Calder, Mr. GrifTin, Mr. O'Brien, Mr. Metz, 
Mr. Riordan, Mr. Goldfogle, Mr. Loft, Mr. Levy, Mr. Conry, 
Mr. Dooling, Mr. Carew, Mr. Patten of New York, Mr. 
Chandler of New York, Mr. Cantor, Mr. George, Mr. 
Bruckner, Mr. Goulden, Mr. Oglesby, Mr. Taylor of New 
York, Mr. Piatt, Mr. McClellan, Mr. Ten Eyck, Mr, Parker 
of New York, Mr. Wallin, Mr. Mott, Mr. Talcott of New 
York, Mr. Fairchild, Mr. Clancy, Mr. Underhill, Mr. Dunn, 
Mr. Danforth, Mr. Gittins, Mr. Smith of New York, Mr. 
DriscoU, and Mr. Hamilton of New Y'ork. 

The Speaker. The Clerk will report the remaining reso- 
lution : 

The Clerk read as follows : 

Resolved, That as a further mark of respect, this House do now 
adjourn. 

The resolution was agreed to; and accordingly (at 1 
o'clock and 9 minutes p. m.) the House adjourned until 
to-morrow, Tuesday, December 8, 1914, at 12 o'clock noon. 

Tuesday, December 8, 19i^. 
A message from the Senate, by Mr. Tullcy, one of its 
clerks, announced that the Senate had passed the follow- 
ing resolution : 

Senate resolution 493 

Resolved, That the Senate has heard with deep sensibility the 
announcement of tlie death of Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., late a 
Representative from the State of New York. 

Resolved, That a committee of six Senators be appointed by the 
Vice President, to join the committee appointed on the part of the 
House of Representatives, to attend the funeral of the deceased 
at Potsdam, N. Y. 

Resolved, That the Secretary communicate a copy of these reso- 
lutions to the House of Representatives. 

[7] 



Memorial Addresses : Representative Merritt 

In compliance with the foregoing resolution, the Vice 
President had appointed as the committee on the part of 
the Senate under the second resolution Mr. Root, Mr. 
O'Gorman, Mr. Sherman, Mr. Martine of New Jersey, Mr. 
Dillingham, and Mr. Saulsburj'. 

Wednesday, January 6, 1915. 

Mr. Calder. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 

Mr. WiNGO. The point of no quorum was made. 

The Speaker. Will the gentleman from Arkansas [Mr. 
Wingo] withhold his point, so that the gentleman can 
offer a resolution? 

Mr. WiNGO. Just so long as the parliamentary status is 
maintained 

The Speaker. It will be maintained. The gentleman 
from New York [Mr. Calder] offers a resolution, which 
the Clerk will report. 

The Clerk read as follows: 

House resolution 697 

Resolved, That Sunday, February 7, be set apart for services 
upon tlie life, character, and public services of the Hon. Sereno 
E. Payne, late a Representative from the State of New Yorli, and 
of the Hon. Edwin A. MERRirT, Jr., late a Representative from the 
State of New York. 

The Speaker. The question is on agreeing to the reso- 
lution. 

The resolution was agreed to. 



[8] 



Proceedings in the House 



Sunday, February 7, 1915. 

The House met at 12 o'clock noon, and was called to 
order by Mr. Fitzgerald as Speaker pro tempore. 

The Chaplain, Rev. Henry N. Couden, D. D., offered the 
following prayer : 

Father in heaven, we thank Thee for the gift of life, its 
wonderful opportunities and far-reaching purposes, the 
earnest of that personal immortality which Thou hast 
woven into the warp and woof of our being, which 
through faith, hope, love, lifts us in our better moments 
up even to the throne of Thy divinity, and fills our hearts 
with longing, hopes, and aspirations; forces, though un- 
seen, which are ever moving us on to the betterment of 
conditions in our homes, in society, in governments, in 
religion. 

We are here on this sacred day to memorialize the life 
and character of two Members of this great body who, 
though dead, still live in our hearts and in the works they 
■wrought as servants of the people. Make us strong to 
emulate, wise to pursue, earnest, faithful, that we may 
achieve and leave the impress of our personality behind 
us and be worthy of the gifts Thou hast bestowed upon us. 
May we look forward with those to whom the departed 
were near and dear in the unbroken continuity of life 
which shall bring us to them in the realms of larger 
light, life, and purity; through Him who taught us the 
way, and tlie truth, and the life. Amen. 

The Speaker pro tempore. The Clerk will read the 
order of the day. 

The Clerk read as follows : 

On motion of Mr. Calder, by unanimous consent, 
Ordered, That Sunday, February 7, 1915, be set apart for 
services upon the lives, characters, and public services of Hon. 
Sereno E. Payne and Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., late Repre- 
sentatives from the State of New York. 



[9] 



Memorial Addresses: Representativ'E Merritt 

Mr. Calder. Mr. Speaker, I offer the following reso- 
lution. 

The Speaker. The gentleman from New York offers a 
resolution, which the Clerk will report. 

The Clerk read as follows: 

House resolution 725 

Resolved, That the business of the House be now suspended, 
that an opportunity may be given for tributes to the memory of 
the Hon. Sereno E. Payne, late a member of the House of Rep- 
resentatives from the State of New York, and to the memory of the 
Hon. Edward A. Merritt, Jr., late a member of the House of 
Representatives from the State of New York. 

Resolved, That as a further mark of respect to the memory of 
the deceased, and in recognition of their eminent abilities as 
distinguished public servants, the House, at the conclusion of 
these memorial proceedings, shall stand adjourned. 

Resolved, That the Clerk communicate these resolutions to the 
Senate. 

Resolved, That the Clerk be instructed to send a copy of these 
resolutions to the families of the deceased. 

The resolution was agreed to. 



[10] 



MEMORIAL ADDRESSES 



Address of Mr. Calder, of New York 

Mr. Speaker: A man who rises to distinction above his 
fellow men does so by reason of some exceptional value 
as a public servant and as a man, and it is this question 
of the value of a man in public service that I desire to 
discuss briefly in connection with the late Edwin A. 
Merritt, Jr., whose memory we revere in the ceremonies 
to-day. 

Mr. Merritt entered the Sixty-second Congress to fill the 
vacancy caused by the death of another great man from 
New York State, Hon. George R. Malby. He took his seat 
at the convening of the short session of the Sixty-second 
Congress in December, 1912. He had been elected to the 
Sixty-third Congress and, recognizing his unusual ability 
as a legislator, the Republican membership in the House 
selected him to represent them on the Committee on 
Rules. Just at that period, however, he was taken ill 
and was unable to render very much service. Last No- 
vember he was reelected to the Sixty-fourth Congress, 
although at the time confined to his home. In December 
he passed away at his home in Potsdam, in the northern 
part of New York State. 

Mr. Merritt's public service was performed largely in 
the Legislature of the State of New York. His work in 
the assembly began in 1902, and he served in that body 
continuously for 11 years. During much of that time he 
was Republican leader of that body, and in his last year 
of service was Speaker. It was my privilege to become 
acquainted with Mr. Merritt during his first year's service 



[11] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

in the legislature, and I learned to regard him as a very 
strong character. He devoted himself to mastering all the 
State's business. He familiarized himself with the in- 
tricacies of the different departments. He was easily the 
best informed man upon the needs of government in New 
York State during his period of service. I can recall a 
conversation with former Gov. Hughes, now a member of 
the Supreme Court of the United States. He told me that 
the man who was most helpful to him in the matter of the 
State's finances was our deceased friend. I have heard 
him often discuss New York matters of great moment. 
When he rose to speak it was with the fullest of informa- 
tion, and when he presented a case it was with a wealth 
of illustration. Not only his supporters but his opponents 
profited by his industry and his painstaking labor. 

The people of a community can receive and deserve no 
higher encomium for their intelligence, their integrity, 
steadfastness, and patriotism than by their continued and 
hearty support of such a man as Mr. Merritt, who for 
many j'ears was afforded an opportunity for such public 
service. He earned and received and appreciated it, and 
the people reaped their full reward by the dedication of a 
rare life solelj' to their welfare. The close of such a long, 
useful, and honored life could not arouse a poignant 
sorrow, except as one would sincerely mourn that such 
a departure is the divine dispensation and that such a 
friend has finally left us. 

To his dear old father, a hero of our great war between 
the States, now an old man, and to his loving wife and 
daughter, all of us here extend our heartfelt sympathy, 
and in their sorrow I am sure it will be some comfort 
to them to feel that their beloved one had the confidence 
and esteem of everj' man with whom he had come in 
contact during his years of service for the State and the 
Nation. 



[12] 



Address of Mr. Calder, of New York 

I do not know to whose memory could be more fittingly 
applied this tribute to a moral hero : 

He never failed to march breast forward, 
Never doubted clouds would break; 
Never thought though right were worsted , 

Wrong would triumph; 
Held we fall to rise, are beaten to light harder. 

Sleep to wake. 



[13] 



Address of Mr. Underhill, of New York 

Mr. Speaker: I did not know the late Edwin A. Mer- 
RiTT, Jr., intimately. He came to this body in the last 
session of the Sixty-second Congress, and attended, so far 
as he was able, the first session of the Sixty-third Con- 
gress. His reputation in the State of New York was very 
high, as he had given his services to the State from 1896 
until 1912. He had served his town as supervisor for 7 
years, his assembly district in St. Lawrence County for 
11 years, and the last 4 years he was the Republican leader 
in that body. When he was elected to Congress, he oc- 
cupied the position of speaker of the assembly. He was 
one of the best informed men in the State regarding 
affairs that affected that Commonwealth, and had his 
health permitted, he would have undoubtedly taken high 
rank in the Congress of tlie United States. He was a 
successful man in political work because he loved to work. 
He was interested in legislation and enjoyed the game 
of politics. He worked hard, and the success of his career 
is due not only to his ability and his education, but in 
great part to his industiy. He did not succeed because he 
was lucky. He succeeded because he worked — constant 
work and close attention to duties. 

I was one of the delegation who attended his funeral at 
his former home, Potsdam. A finer tribute could not have 
been rendered than that which took place there, that 
cold December day, when the pulse of business was still, 
and people gathered from manj' parts of northern New 
York, Albany, and New York City, as well as from the 
National Capital, to offer their last tribute of respect to 
one whom they had learned to love and admire. The 
services were of the most dignified character. It was 

[14] 



Address of Mr. Underhill, of New York 

remarked that those who participated and those who 
attended seemed to be filled with a personal obligation 
which they were endeavoring to discharge in the most 
fitting manner possible, 

A man of the life, character, works, and faith of Edwin 
A. Merrftt, Jr., does not die, for in the words of an un- 
known author — 

There is no death; the stars go down 

To rise upon some fairer shore, 
And bright in heaven's jeweled crown 

They shine forevermore. 

There is no death; an angel form 

Walks o'er the earth with silent tread; 

He bears our best-loved things away. 
And then we call them dead. 

Born into that undying life. 

They leave us but to come again; 
In all, in everything, the same, 

Except in grief and pain. 

And ever near us, though unseen. 

The dear immortal spirits tread. 
For all the boundless universe is life; 

There are no dead I 



4093°— IG 2 [15] 



Address of Mr. Lenroot, of Wisconsin 

Mr. Speaker: Mr. Merritt was not as well known to 
his colleagues as he would have been had not the hand 
of illness fallen upon him early in his service here. How- 
ever, he was a man of such strong personality that he 
gained for himself in a few months a position that it 
often requires years of service of men of more than 
average ability to secure. At the beginning of his second 
term he was appointed a member of the Committee on 
Rules, one of the most important committees of the House, 
and in some respects the most important. Membership 
upon this committee is eagerly sought, and usually at- 
tained only after many years of service. Mr^ Merritt's 
appointment, however, was recognized by all who knew 
him as being due to his special qualifications for service 
in this important place. As a leader in his great State, as 
speaker of the New York Assembly, he had not only a 
special knowledge of parliamentary law, but intimate 
knowledge of the many important subjects of legislation. 

He attended only a few of the meetings of the Com- 
mittee on Rules, for the illness which caused his death 
came upon him shortly after his appointment to that 
committee; but in the meetings he did attend he so im- 
pressed himself upon his colleagues, that we have a keen 
realization of what the committee, the House, and the 
countrjr has lost by his death. He was a man of but few 
words, as we knew him, but when he did speak we knew 
that it was from a mature and well-considered judgment, 
formed after carefully considering all sides of the ques- 
tion involved. His modesty, his kindliness, and his wise 
counsel we shall always remember. The House has lost a 
valuable Member, his State and country a faithful servant. 

[16] 



Address of Mr. Fitzgerald, of New York 

Mr. Speaker : Death lays a hea\'y toll upon the House of 
Representatives. It exempts no group from its levy. We 
have just paid merited tribute to the memory of the late 
Sereno E. Payne. For more than a quarter of a century 
he had served in the House with distinction. We now 
commemorate the services of another Member from the 
State of New York who has been called from this life. His 
service in the House was too brief to enable him to attain 
commanding place in it. Protracted ill health prevented 
the advancement otherwise possible even in his shortened 
career. Few who knew him, however, were not convinced 
that, had Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., been spared for long 
service in this body, he would have won the confidence of 
the House by his industry and sagacity, his wide knowl- 
edge, and by virtue of his peculiar capacity for con- 
structive work in a legislative body. He was hardly 
known to the Members of the House. The confidence of 
his friends in the brilliancy of his career was based upon 
an intimate knowledge of his work in the Legislature of 
the State of New York. 

Gifted with a powerful physique, his was a command- 
ing figure. Highly educated and widely read, his logical 
and retentive mind was stored with a mass of useful infor- 
mation which he commanded with facility. Possessed of 
the peculiar gifts which adapt some men preeminently for 
a parliamentary career, his great talents had been utilized 
in the preparation of many important laws which to-day 
are of inestimable benefit to the State of New York. 

With his training, experience, knowledge, and adapt- 
ability he would unquestionably have been a valued and 
influential Member of the House had he lived sufficiently 

[17] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

long to have had full opportunity to display in this new 
field his wonderful gifts. Inscrutable, indeed, however, 
are the ways of Divine Providence. His predecessor, the 
late George R. Malby, had had an equally brilliant career 
in the Legislature of the State of New York. Like Mi-. 
Merritt he had been the leader of his party and tlien 
speaker of the assembly. He had also served in the senate 
for a number of years, while Mr. Merritt's service had 
been confined to the assembly. After a brief service here, 
during which he had demonstrated his value to the 
House, he was unexpectedly called to another life. The 
brevity of the service of these two men from the same 
district, after their useful careers in the State legislature, 
is a unique coincidence. 

Either one of them would have achieved distinction had 
his service been sufficiently extended. 

Those who knew Mr. Merritt admired him sincerely. 
He had a most attractive personality and, despite his 
unusual gifts, was modest and attracted and attached men 
to him. 

For many years I enjoj'ed his acquaintance. Familiar 
with his activity in the field he quit to take up the duties 
of this body, I was one of those who believed that he 
would speedily impress his personality upon the House. 

In his death the country has lost a capable and a useful 
public servant, his family and friends one who will long 
be mourned for his many good and lovable qualities. 



[18] 



Address of Mr. Mott, of New York 

Mr. Speaker: Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., represented the 
largest district in area in the State of New York. It was 
the great Adirondack district, comprising the counties of 
Clinton, Essex, Franklin, and St. Lawrence. Mr. Merritt 
was in touch with the district as thoroughly as a Repre- 
sentative could have been. The leading manufacturing 
interest was in the making of paper, and he was an officer 
or stockholder in several companies. It is the hunting 
and fishing ground of New York State, and Mr. Merritt 
knew the woods and waters well. He knew the wants 
of his people by intimate association with them, and tried 
to see that they were filled. He was a born leader whether 
in public or private life, and his people in his own home 
county of St. Lawrence lionored him by sending him 
11 terms to the State legislature, and, afterwards, the 
congressional district twice elected him to the House of 
Representatives. 

Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., was a big man; that was the 
impression he left on all who met him. Not alone a big 
man physically, for he had a giant's frame and strengtii, 
but proportionally big mentally. It was just the strength 
of body and mind that one would expect, knowing his 
splendid father, who still lives at the family home, and 
knowing the kind of men who succeed in the north 
country where courage and perseverance and ability to 
fight are brought into daily play. He was the typical giant 
of the north. 

But few men at Washington came to know Mr. Merritt 
well. He was not here long before he was attacked with 
what proved to be a fatal sickness. But he was here long 
enough to study out things and long enough for his 

[19] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

friends to realize that if he were continued in service, as 
he would have been, he would have heen as successful 
and useful a Member to this House as he had proved to 
be at Albany in the Assembly of the State of New York. 

At Albany Mr. Merritt spent the best years of his career. 
Elected to the assembly in 1902, in 1908 he became leader 
of the majority in that house, under Speaker James W. 
Wadsworth, just elected to the United States Senate. In 
1912 he was elected speaker of the assembly. In these two 
oflBces he left his mark on all the leading legislation 
passed by the legislature. Our highway law and our 
public-service law were matters of careful study to him, 
and not a bill passed the assembly with which he was 
not familiar. The men who served with him during these 
11 years, even if all of them could not agree with him on 
various questions, all respected Mr. Merritt as a leader 
and loved him as a friend. The State of New York, with- 
out regard to party, paid tribute to him at his death. 

Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., was brave, generous, loyal, and 
true. He will long live in the affectionate regard of those 
who knew him, and they will not cease to mourn for him. 
He has passed on to rest, but his hold on tlie hearts and 
affections of his friends is undiminished. 



[20] 



Address of Mr. Moore, of Pennsylvania 

Mr. Speaker: It is a sad commentary upon human 
affairs that Hfe must end, not always in youthful maturity 
or ripened old age, but sometimes at that period when it 
is best equipped for useful public service. The career 
of our late colleague, Mr. Merritt, at the bar and in the 
Legislature of the State of New York, had prepared him 
for those higher duties which are imposed upon a Rep- 
resentative of tlae people at the Nation's Capitol. In good 
part and with becoming enthusiasm he had entered upon 
that work. One of his first assignments was to the Com- 
mittee on Immigration and Naturalization, of which I am 
a member. It was there we began to know him better 
and to understand him and the purposes which animated 
him in coming to the House. His legislative experience 
and the readiness and ability with which he took up the 
duties assigned him gave promise of excellent future 
service. He was of the minority of the Immigration 
Committee and tlie benefit of his counsel and advice had 
just begun to be appreciated when word came of his 
illness. Then followed the last sad message. Our col- 
league had passed from the responsibilities placed upon 
him by his constituents to that higher service which none 
may resign. Mr. Merritt was stricken when we were 
beginning to avail ourselves of his mental powers and his 
legislative experience. What may we say of so sudden 
a taking off? It was not our way, nor is it for us to com- 
plain. The grief we share with those who knew and loved 
him best may in part be assuaged by the satisfaction we 
have in knowing that the work he did here was well and 
faithfully done. In tribute to his memory we can truth- 
fully say what is most commendable of the public servant, 
that the silver cord which bound our colleague to his 
earthly task was broken when the best that was in him 
had been dedicated to the public weal. 

[21] 



Address of Mr. Wallin, of New York 

Mr. Speaker: To-day it is meet to pay tribute to Edwin 
A. Merritt, Jr., who died while in the service of this House. 
Mr. Merritt was a man of such pronounced physical 
attainments that rash would he have been considered 
who should have forecasted his demise at a period so 
early in his career. Strong as he was bodily, his men- 
tality was fully as great. For years a member of the 
New York Legislature, he soon took rank with the leaders 
in that capitol and the State, and was everywhere looked 
upon as unquestionably among the most able of his col- 
leagues, both as an originator and a framer of legislation. 
From a modest newcomer in the assembly, in less than 10 
years he had worked his way up until he attained the 
leadership of that body and acquired an acquaintance 
and distinction with the public men of the State enjoyed 
by few in recent years. 

Mr. Merritt was well educated, graduating from Y'ale 
College in 1884. He was possessed of a comprehensive 
mind and mental attainments which soon marked for 
more than ordinary heights in his chosen field. How well 
he fulfilled the early expectations of his many home 
friends the record shows. His influence in public affairs 
was always toward the right. He was forceful and ardent 
in his labors, and once having formed his opinion nothing 
could change his position save proof that his conclusion 
was wrong. He was man enough to realize that every 
question has two sides and his ambition was to be in the 
right, whether the matter was one relating to public or 
private aff"airs. His rapid development as a statesman 
was a matter of gratification, especially to those whose 
good fortune it was to know him intimately, and thus, 

[22] 



Address of Mr. Wallin, of New York 

when he was selected to fill in this body the place made 
vacant by his former leader and associate, the Hon. 
George R. Malby, his constituents were commended for 
their recognition of those abilities which make for good 
representation in the councils of the Nation. 

Mr. Merritt's service here was brief, but it was suffi- 
ciently long to premise a brilliant and useful career in 
the House, when a fatal malady attacked him and he 
gradually succumbed to the inevitable. When his life 
went out a bright light was extinguished and a wide circle 
mourned. The sympathy of an empirical State and of his 
colleagues in this Chamber from every State in the Union 
was extended in their sorrow and affliction to the mem- 
bers of his family, and it is now we place on the record 
our tribute of appreciation and recognition of his ability 
and worth in every walk of life, and our expression of 
grief that he will be with us no more. 

Of him, as of another, it may be said : 

A man that Fortune's buffets and rewards 
Hast ta'en witli equal thanks. 



[23] 



Address of Mr. Parker, of New York 

Mr. Speaker: I consider it indeed an honor to pay my 
tribute to the memorj^ of the Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., 
a truly great and remarkable man. Probablj' no man 
in this body knew Mr. Merritt as intimately as I, having 
been associated with him in legislative work for over a 
decade, and during that time having been his intimate 
friend. 

He was a giant in stature, with a mental equipment to 
match. The surroundings of one's youth have a great 
influence upon the habits and characteristics of life. Mr. 
Merritt was raised among the rugged foothills of the 
Adirondacks. He came of a hardy race of pioneers, men 
who had blazed the trail into that north country, and 
the natural character of his mind and body was that of 
the hardy, capable, self-reliant pioneer. Endowed with a 
brilliant mental equipment which was polished and 
trained by his education at Yale, his was indeed a mind 
that was fitted to grasp and deal with the complex ques- 
tions that confronted him during his legislative career. 

He entered public life early in the struggle of the 
people to control vast corporate interests. He had given 
this question much studj' and thought, and he had very 
certain and pronounced convictions, as, years before the 
final creation of a commission to regulate public scrsice 
corporations, I had discussed this matter with him and 
understood his views. He believed in the power of the 
Government, and believed that that power should be 
exercised to regulate, and regulate for the people's 
interests. The first legislation along this line which he 
drafted was legislation which made the then existing 
railroad commission in the State of New Y6rk a State 

[24] 



Address of Mr. Parker, of New York 

charge instead of having the expenses of the commission 
paid by assessment on the railroad corporations. This 
proposed legislation was misunderstood and defeated, 
but I well remember Mr. Merritt's remarks concerning it, 
when he said that no adequate regulation can be had 
when the regulators are paid by the corporations that are 
to be regulated. 

Soon after the defeat of this bill he was a dominant 
figure in an investigation regarding the conditions of 
the gas companies of New York City, and drew and 
introduced a bill which created a gas commission, and 
saw his theorj^ put into effect by seeing the expenses of 
the gas commission paid by the State. He was a great 
admirer of Gov. Charles E. Hughes, Gov. Hughes attain- 
ing wide public recognition on account of having been 
counsel for this investigating committee. When Mr. 
Hughes was elected governor, it was natural that Mr. 
Merritt should be the man selected to draw the public 
service corporations bill, which was to regulate the great 
corporate interests of our State. He saw what few men 
see, his theory, which had been called impractical only a 
few years before, put into full force and operation in the 
great State of New York. 

He had the most accurate mind of any man with whom 
it has ever been my privilege to be intimately associated. 
There were few spectacular flights of brilliancy, but his 
mind always worked like an accurate, well-oiled machine. 
His final determinations and opinions were so universally 
accurate that his opinions and judgment were eagerly 
sought by his friends and acquaintances. He gave the 
best years of his life to the service of his Stale, and there 
is no question but what the same energy and abilitj' 
expended in private life would have brought him tre- 
mendous personal advantages. 

He left his decided imprint upon the policy of the State 
of New York, and knowing him as I did, I am absolutely 

[25] 



Memorial Addresses: REPRESENTATrvE Merritt 

certain that had he lived his tremendous force of character 
would have made the same imprint upon the policies of 
national legislation. 

Personally, he was a most lovahle man. The primitive 
surroundings of his youth strengthened his regard for 
friendship, and a man that was his friend was indeed 
fortunate, for there was no sacrifice that he would not 
make for that friendship. One of his strongest char- 
acteristics was his entire and absolute loyalty to his 
friends. He was big-hearted, generous, intolerant of the 
petty meannesses of little minds, but alwajs tolerant of 
honest convictions, although differing from his. 

He was a man of unlimited courage, the kind of moral 
courage that permitted him to stand by his friends if he 
thought they were right, and to stand by his convictions 
on public questions although those convictions were at the 
moment unpopular. The most dominant characteristics 
of his nature, to us who knew him well, were his accuracy 
of judgment and his unflinching courage; characteristics 
that are indeed all too rare. I doubt if there was a man in 
the State who had more friends than Mr. Merritt, and 
these friends were not confined to his political associates, 
but numbered many of his political adversaries, all of 
whom recognized that he was a hard, courageous fighter, 
but that he always fought fairly. He had the gift of so 
many able men, of illustrating a point or administering a 
rebuke with an anecdote, which was always to the point, 
and many times illustrated the point or made unnecessary 
the harsh and cutting statement that must have been 
uttered had it not been for the milder way which he used 
to accomplish the same result. 

In the death of Mr. Merritt the National Legislature 
loses the influence of a great, big, broad-minded, able 
man, and we who knew him well lose an esteemed and 
loyal friend. 



[26] 



Address of Mr. Parker, of New York 

Mr. Speaker, I desire to ask unanimous consent to print 
in the Record the proceedings of the memorial services 
held in honor of the late Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., in the 
assembly chamber at Albany, N. Y., on Januarj' 20, 
1915, and also to include the proceedings of the public 
memorial services held at Potsdam, N. Y., on December 
14, 1914. 

The Speaker pro tempore. Is there objection? 

There was no objection. 

The proceedings referred to are as follows : 

(See pp. 31-57 for proceedings of memorial services in tlie as- 
sembly chamber at Albany, N. Y., and pp. 59-65 for proceedings 
of public memorial services at Potsdam, N. Y.) 

leave to print 

Mr. Calder. Mr. Speaker, as there are several Members 
of the House who desire to take part in these memorial 
proceedings who are unable to be present to-day, I ask 
unanimous consent that all Members of the House who 
desire to do so have leave to print. 

The Speaker pro tempore. If there be no objection, 
unanimous consent will be given to print remarks ap- 
propriate to the occasion. 

There was no objection. 

The Speaker pro tempore. Pursuant to tlie resolution 
heretofore adopted, and as a further tribute to the 
memory of the deceased, the House will now adjourn. 

According!}' (at 2 o'clock and 15 minutes p. m.) the 
House adjourned until Monday, February 8, 1915, at 11 
o'clock a. m. 



[27] 



Proceedings in the Senate 

Monday, December 7, :/9:/4. 

Mr. Root. Mr. President, I offer the following resolu- 
tions and ask that they be read. 

The Vice President. The Secretary will read the reso- 
lutions. 

The resolutions (S. Res. 493) were read, considered by 
unanimous consent, and unanimously agreed to, as 
follows : 

Resolved, That the Senate has heard with deep sensibility 
announcement of the death of Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., late a 
Representative from the State of New York, 

Resolved, That a committee of six Senators be appointed by the 
Vice President, to join the committee appointed on the part of the 
House of Representatives, to attend the funeral of the deceased 
at Potsdam, N. Y. 

Resolved, That the Secretary communicate a copy of these 
resolutions to the House of Representatives. 

The Vice President appointed as the committee on the 
part of the Senate under the second resolution Mr. Root, 
Mr. O'Gorman, Mr. Sherman, Mr. Marline of New Jersey, 
Mr. Dillingham, and Mr. Saulsbury. 

Mr. Root. Mr. President, as a further mark of respect I 
move that the Senate do now adjourn. 

The motion was unanimously agreed to, and (at 3 
o'clock and 55 minutes p. m.) the Senate adjourned until 
to-morrow, December 8, 1914, at 12 o'clock meridian. 



[29] 



EXERCISES AT ALBANY, N. Y. 

Exercises in memory of Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., 
held in the assembly chamber. State capitol, Albany, N. Y., 
Wednesday evening, January 20, 1915, 8 p. m., Hon. 
Thaddeus C. Sweet, speaker of the assembly, presiding. 
In the presence of Hon. Charles S. Whitman, governor 
of the State of New York, and the members of the senate 
and the assembly. 

Speaker Sweet. Prayer will be offered by the Rev. W. J. 
Hamilton, of Potsdam, N. Y. 

Rev. Hamilton. We will read a part of the Ninetieth 
Psalm : 

" Lord, Thou hast been our refuge, from one generation 
to another. Before the mountains were brought forth, or 
ever the earth and the world were made; Thou art God 
from everlasting, and world without end. Thou turnest 
man to destruction; again Thou sayest. Come again, ye 
children of men. For a thousand years in Thy sight are 
but as yesterday; seeing that is past as a watch in the 
night. As soon as Thou scatterest them they are even as a 
sleep; and fade away suddenly like the grass. In the 
morning it is green, and groweth up; but in the evening it 
is cut doM'u, dried up, and withered. For we consume 
away in Thy displeasure and are afraid at Thy wrathful 
indignation. Thou hast set our misdeeds before Thee, 
and our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance. For 
when Thou art angry all our days are gone; we bring our 
years to an end, as it were a tale that is told. The days 
of our age are threescore years and ten ; and though men 
be so strong that they come to fourscore years; yet is 
their strength then but labor and sorrow; so soon passeth 



4093°— 16- 



[31] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

it away, and we are gone. Oh, teach us to number our 
days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom." 
So endeth the lesson. Let us pray. 

Direct, O Lord, in this and all our doings with Thy most 
gracious favor, and further us with Thy continual help, 
that in this and all our works, begun, continued, and 
ended in Thee, we may always glorify Thy holy name, 
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. 

O merciful God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who 
is the resurrection and the life, in whom whosoever be- 
lieveth shall live, though he die, and whosoever liveth 
and believeth in him shall not die eternally; who also has 
taught us, by His holy apostle St. Paul, not to be sorrj', 
as men without hope, for those who sleep in Him. We 
humbly beseech Thee, O Father, to raise us from the 
death of sin unto the life of righteousness, that, when we 
shall depart this life, we may rest in Him, and that, at the 
general resurrection in the last day we may be found 
acceptable in Thy sight and receive that blessing which 
Thj' well-beloved Son shall then pronounce to all who 
love and fear Thee, saying. Come, ye blessed children of 
My Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you from 
the beginning of the world. Grant this, we beseech Thee, 
O merciful Father, through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. 

O most merciful Father, who hast been pleased to take 
unto Thyself the soul of our brother, grant to us who are 
still in our pilgrimage and who walk as yet by faith that 
having served Thee with constancy on earth we may be 
joined hereafter with Tlw blessed saints in glory everlast- 
ing, through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. 

O Lord, who by Thy death didst take away the sting of 
death, grant unto us. Thy servants, so to follow in faith 
where Thou hast led the way, that we may at length fall 
asleep peacefully in Thee and awake up after Thy like- 



[32] 



Exercises at Albany, N. Y. 



ness, through Thy mercy, who livest with the Father and 
the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. 

O God, whose days are without end and whose mercies 
can not he numbered, make us, we beseech Thee, deeply 
sensible of the shortness and uncertainty of human life, and 
let Thy holy spirit lead us through this valley of miseiy in 
holiness and righteousness all the days of our lives, that, 
when we shall have served Thee in our generation, we may 
be gathered unto our fathers in the confidence of a certain 
faith, in the comfort of a reasonable religious and holy 
hope, in favor with Thee, our God, and in perfect charity 
with the world. And all we ask through Jesus Christ, 
Our Lord. 

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; 
Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in 
heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive 
us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass 
against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver 
us from evil, for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, 
and the glory forever. Amen. 



[33] 



Address of Mr. Thaddeus C. Sweet 
Speaker of the New York Assembly 

Those who were associated with him as a member of 
assembly, who served under his helpful direction as 
speaker, and those who are familiar with his faithful 
and intelligent service in the State and National Legisla- 
tures, meet to-night to honor the memory of Edwin A. 
Merritt, Jr. 

Those who served with him can bear witness to his high 
qualities of mind and heart and to his charming person- 
ality, which drew around him at all times a band of faith- 
ful and admiring friends and which endeared him to all 
his associates. Possessed of great mental vigor and 
physical strength, he used to the best of advantage in his 
long service in the assembly and in the House of Repre- 
sentatives his intellectual powers in the highest interests 
of the State and of the Nation. 

We can not lose sight of such a man, the work he 
performed, or the influence he exerted upon the inter- 
ests and activities of the Commonwealth. He had a wide 
knowledge of the affairs of state. He was interested in 
its financial, commercial, and educational welfare, was 
always active in promoting all measures which had for 
their object the uplift of the people, and throughout his 
legislative career was a faithful and energetic public 
servant. 

He exerted an influence among his associates which 
they will long remember, and all who believe in the power 
of education and honor to advance the integrity, useful- 
ness, and power of good citizenship will chefish his 
memory and hold his example in loving remembrance. 
It is character only which lives, and his character, com- 
bined with honorable public service, can not be forgotten. 

[34] 



Address of Mr. Thaddeus C. S%veet 



Selection, "Lead, Kindly Light," by double quartet, 
composed of the following: Sopranos, Mrs. Charlotte 
Bord Gilbert, Miss Alice E. Taylor; contraltos, Mrs. Edith 
Cleghorn Weaver, Mrs. Edna Herrick Peck; tenors, Ben 
Franklin, George W. Franklin; bassos, Roy H. Palmer, 
John N. Edwards. 

Lead, kindly light, amid the encircling gloom, 

Lead, Thou me on! 
The night is dark, and I am far from home, 

Lead Thou me on I 
Keep Thou my feet! I do not ask to see 
The distant scene; one step enough for me. 

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that Thou 

Shouldst lead me on; 
I loved to choose and see my path; but now 

Lead Thou me on! 
I loved the garish day; and, spite of fears. 
Pride ruled my will. Remember not past years. 

So long Thy power has blest me, sure it still 

Will lead me on 
O'er moor and fen, o'er crag and torrent, till 

The night is gone; 
And with the morn those angel faces smile, 
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile. 

Speaker Sweet. It has been the purpose of your com- 
mittee to conduct the exercises in harmony with the life 
led by our departed brother and friend, and we have in- 
vited as the speakers his former and closest associates. 
I take great pleasure in presenting to you the first speaker 
of the evening, Hon. Frank L. Young. 



[35] 






Address of Mr. Frank L. Young 

Mr. Speaker, Ladies, and Gentlemen : Memorial services 
are as old as recorded history, and even in the daj's before 
written histoiy the memory of leading men in every land 
and clime was perpetuated in the manner characteristic 
of their country. 

In his oration on the Athenian dead, Pericles, after 
speaking eloquently on the characteristics of his country, 
the elements which had made it great, and the resources 
of its strength, stated of the men who were being memorial- 
ized, the honored dead, " Such did these men prove them- 
selves as became the character of their country." 

In every land there is an ideal manhood, expressed or 
unexpressed. This ideal is composite, made up of the 
opinions of all the different grades of men and of every 
school of thought, and yet is, on the whole, capable of 
definition. 

The man who receives honor is the man whose life and 
work are most consonant with the ideal of the countrj' 
in which he lives. To be true to such an ideal means 
honor and renown. In no land has such honor ever been 
purchased by wealth. It comes along from service, self- 
sacrifice, and patriotic devotion to duty. In everj' land 
honor and renown are accorded to everj' citizen who fills 
his life with service, self-sacrifice, and patriotism in any 
walk of life, public or private, civil or martial. 

No one can point out the source of the American ideal 
of manhood. Like our people, the source of our ideals 
seems to have been drawn from every part of the civilized 
globe. In them are to be discerned the religious teachings 
of all denominations, the self-sacrifice of the early 
founders of our Republic, who were willing to endure 

[36] 



Address of Mr. Frank L. Young 



anything that they might enjoy freedom of conscience, 
and the courage and bravery of the early colonists whose 
bold patriotism compelled them to take up arms to fight 
for a place where their ideals might be worked out in 
human conduct. 

From whatever source this well-recognized American 
spirit came, in these days and times it expresses itself in 
self-reliance, fair play, and the giving of equal oppor- 
tunitJ^ We visualize the American ideal in the self- 
reliant man who asks no favors but demands an oppor- 
tunity as his right; in the self-sacrificing man who is 
willing to spend and be spent that good may prevail; and 
in the patriotic man who, under heaven, finds his 
country's demand superior and undeniable. 

The American ideal demands honesty, clean living, 
fair dealing, equal opportunity to all, industry and devo- 
tion to her institutions, and the American citizen who is 
true to that ideal, who is alert, active, unrestrained, and 
devoted in the performance of his duty, the American 
people have always crowned and will always continue to 
crown with honor. 

And as men who have lived consistently and honorably 
up to that ideal pass away, the hearts of the American 
people are proud to acknowledge their service with the 
highest measure of praise, and, whether or not their 
memorials consist of statues or other material construc- 
tions, they earn and they possess an indestructible 
memorial in the hearts and affections of the American 

people. 

We are now observing a simple memorial service in 
appreciation of a really great man, who was more than a 
friend to many in this chamber who grieve with his 
honored father and his gracious wife and lovely daughter 
in their sorrow and affliction. 

It is not an empty, formal service, but it is a sincere 
and spontaneous expression of esteem from his personal 



[37] 



Memorial Addresses : Representative Merritt 

and political associates. His great soul has passed to 
" that bourne from which no traveler returns." We have 
gathered in honor of his memory because we appreciated 
and loved him. Weakly we say that Edwin A. Merritt, 
Jr., is dead — weakly, because in the friendships he estab- 
lished he is not dead, nor has his enduring work for the 
State of New York been diminished by his demise. We 
remember him for his wonderful powers of body, brain, 
and heart which he consecrated without limit to his 
friends and to his State. We remember him because he 
was an intensely human, big-brained, big-hearted man. 
We remember him because he fulfilled and represented 
the very clear and definite ideal which the American 
people accept as the best expression in human form of 
American manhood. 

This ideal is beautifully and eloquently expressed in 
the metrical prayer of John G. Holland: 

God, give us men! A time like this demands 

Strong minds, great hearts, true faith, and ready hands; 

Men whom the lust of office does not kill; 

Men whom the spoils of office can not buy; 

Men who possess opinions and a will; 

Men who love honor, men who will not lie; 

Men who can stand before a demagogue. 

And damn his treacherous flatteries without winking; 

Tall men, sun-crowned, who live above the fog 

In public duty and in private thinking; 

For while the rabble, with their thumb-worn creeds. 

Their large professions, and their little deeds, 

Mingle in selfish strife, lo! Freedom weeps, 

Wrong rules the land, and waiting Justice sleeps. 

The salvation and the benefits of the American Republic 
depend upon the fact that from time to time, in various 
places, exemplars of the American ideal appear to give 
substantial proof that our institutions and our laws are 
not based upon hopes that arc impossible of human 
achievement. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., is one such ex- 
emplar. 

[38] 



Address of Mr. Frank L. Young 



Useful and inspiring as were the lives of Wasliington 
and Lincoln to their own times, they have been more 
useful and more inspiring to the American people since. 

Thej' gave back their honors to the world, 

Their better part to heaven, and slept in peace. 

For the generations which succeeded them Iiave drawn, 
are still drawing, and will continue to draw useful in- 
spiration from their works and their characters. 

Doubtless historj"^ will not record the name of Edwin A. 
Merritt, Jr., as high on the roll of fame as the name of 
Washington stands, but it is true, nevertheless, that Mr. 
Merritt solved greater financial problems than ever con- 
fronted our first President, and in that work for his State 
his rugged honestj% his spotless integritj% and his mag- 
nanimous unselfishness were as great as those of the 
" Father of his Countrj\" 

Nor will his name appear on the pages of American 
historj^ as luminous as that of Abraham Lincoln, and yet 
it is a fact tliat in his discernment, his measure of men, 
his hatred of sham and hyprocrisy, his faith in the Ameri- 
can people, his courage while under attack, and in the 
humor which saves, he was not so unlike that martyred 
President. 

God forbid that we should be fulsome in this service, 
for our deceased friend was a plain, truthtelling man, to 
whom sucli praises would have been abhorrent, but those 
of us who knew him best in his public life accord to him 
as high a place as any other statesman who ever gave his 
services to the State of New York. 

Entering the assembly in 1902, he gave 11 years of his 
life to the State, and in his last year he was the speaker. 
During four of those years I knew him intimately, and 
counseled and advised with him about many topics of 
great importance. Without meaning to draw invidious 
comparisons, I want to say that he had a more compre- 

[39] 



Memorial Addresses : Representative Merritt 

hensive and accurate knowledge of the State's affairs than 
any man connected with the State government in those 
days. His great brain was a veritable storehouse of infor- 
mation, and, regardless of physical consequences, he de- 
voted all his mental powers unselfishly and without stint 
to his public duty. 

He came to the legislature in his mature years, in the 
plenitude of his physical and intellectual powers, and 
he immediately rose to first rank among the lawmakers 
of the State. It is not too much to say that in all the 
recent constructive legislation in this State his was a guid- 
ing, if not a controlling, hand. 

But in addition to these great mental powers, the pos- 
session of which has always been conceded by those who 
knew him, he possessed other attributes which made him 
a positive and beneficent force among his associates. 
Among these traits was his great magnanimity. Even in 
the heat of conflict he was generous to his opponents, 
caring nothing for the adventitious issues, but always 
looking forward to the accomplishment of his purposes 
with a firm reliance in their righteousness. 

It was easy, too, for him to make acknowledgment of 
the assistance of others, and to give full credit to all to 
whom credit was due, notwitlistanding the fact that his 
own prestige might not seem so great by so doing. He 
seemed able to forget and forgive eveiything except 
meanness and littleness of soul. But, even for such men, 
he almost invariably exhibited a tolerant charity. 

He was never known to tear down the reputation of 
another that his own reputation might be thereby en- 
hanced — a somewhat exceptional record in these days 
of self-constituted professional reformers. 

Friendship was to him a sacred thing to be cherished and 
not to be lightly forfeited. I well remember an occasion 
when the fortunes of one of his friends, who is even now 
in this company, were being discussed. A bitter attack 

[40] 



Address of Mr. Frank L. Young 



was made upon his friend, and, after listening patiently 
to the arraignment which was made against him, he said, 
with more feeling than was usual with him, " That man 
may be all you say he is, but I do not believe it. He is my 
friend. That may mean much or little to you, but it means 
a lot to me, and I will hear nothing further about him." 

This is one instance only of the tenacity and sincerity 
of his friendship. In fact, I never knew him to be severe 
except when dealing with a fakir or a hypocrite ; with his 
keen insight into the intricacies of human conduct, he was 
never deceived by them, and with remarkable swiftness 
he could dissect their flattering and deceitful propositions 
and expose insincerity in all its nakedness. 

In such circumstances his wit and humor were as keen 
as a rapier, and many a time have I witnessed the dis- 
comfiture and defeat of a fraud by the simple telling of a 
stoiy which illustrated the point. 

He was well adapted by nature and training for the 
very highest legislative and executive offices. I believe 
that circumstances prevented a proper recognition of his 
wonderful powers. He knew perfectly well the enmities 
he created by plainness of speech, which to him seemed 
necessary. He knew that in public life — 

Men will hate thee. 
Men will love thee; 
Men will flatter, 
Men will slight. 

but looked upon all his experiences as merely necessary, 
temporary incidents, and kept true to the spirit that was 
within him. He was willing at all times to pay the price 
of his popularity whenever he felt the justice of his cause. 
In this brief manner I have summarized the character- 
istics of our deceased friend, as I saw him and understood 
him. He was a truly great man, worthy of all the best 
traditions of American manhood, entitled to full praise 

[41] 



Memori.\l Addresses : Representative Merritt 

for the self-sacrificing and efficient service which he gave 
to our State. May his example be a stimulus to all of us, 
to prepare for that practical patriotism which gives 
service as well as tribute to the State! 

Long may the memorj' of our great associate remain 
among us for the betterment and improvement of the 
American commonwealth. True to his times, and true to 
himself, he performed his fullest obligations both as a 
man and as a citizen. 

The friendly social, honest man, 

Whate'er he be, 
'Tis he fulfills great nature's plan. 

And none but he. 

The State has lost a capable servant and may well 
mourn for him, but the keenest loss is felt among those 
who personally enjoyed the honor of his friendship and 
the inspiration of his character. 

We shall remember him as 

One who never turned his back, but march'd breast forward; 

Never doubted clouds would break; 

Never dream'd, though right were worsted, wrong would triumph; 

Held, We fall to rise, are baffled to fight better, sleep to wake. 

Selection by double quartet, " Crossing the Bar " : 

Sunset and evening star, 

And one clear call for nic! 
And may there be no moaning of the bar 

When I put out to sea, 

But such a tide as moving seems asleep, 

Too full for sound and foam. 
When that which drew from out the boundless deep 

Turns again home. 

Twilight and evening bell, 

And after that the dark! 
And may there be no sadness of farewell 

When I embark; 

[42] 



Address of Mr. Frank L. Young 



For though from out our bourne of Time and Place 

The flood may bear me far, 
I hope to see my Pilot face to face 

When I have crost the bar. 

Speaker Sweet. Men in all walks of life may oppose 
one another, whether it be commercially or politically, but 
though opposed they may still be friends. I take pleasure 
in presenting to you the next speaker of the evening, the 
political opponent but the fast friend, Hon. Alfred E. 
Smith. 



[43] 



Address of Mr. Alfred E. Smith 

Mr. Speaker, Ladies, and Gentlemen : I feel very deeply 
honored to be pei-mitted to speak a word at this memorial 
service to our late lamented friend and comrade, Edwin 
A. Merritt, Jr. I met him in 1904 when I entered this 
chamber for the first time. He was then a prominent 
member on the majority side of the house. I served with 
him througli the years until 1912, when he was elected 
speaker, and in that time I developed for liim as strong 
an affection as it is possible for one man to have for 
another, not of his own relationsliip. His many noble 
qualities of heart and mind endeared him to every man 
that sat in tliis chamber, and it is gratifying to see so 
many of them here to-night from all parts of the State to 
join in this gathering and to do honor to his memory. 

In the memoir of his distinguished father, I read this 
passage from the reti'ospect: "Without boasting, 1 can 
truly say that in a long life which has not been free from 
any contests, I have never knowingly taken unfair ad- 
vantage of my opponents and if I have fought hard, I liave 
fought fairly." 1 thought, as I read, how forcefully this 
trait was iinpressed on the life and character of Edwin 
A. Merritt, Jr. He was a strong partisan. He believed 
very firmly in the principles and precepts of the Republi- 
can Partj% but he put the good of the State first and sup- 
ported any measures he believed to be in tlie interest of 
the commonweal. He was a forceful orator and drew the 
sword of debate with as much strength and vigor as any 
man that ever stood on this floor, and better than all, he 
left behind no sting — no bitterness. " 

He was a good friend. His friendship was really worth 
having. He helped me to success when my failure may 

[44] 



Address of Mr. Alfred E. Smith 



have meant something of advantage to his party. Public 
life makes many fair weather friends. Many there are 
tliat shake your hand and pat your back when you are in 
the heyday of your power, but Merritt's friendship was 
of the kind that was more powerful when the clouds of 
political adversity frowned upon you. 

He had a smile and a good word for everybody, from 
the highest to the lowest, that were connected with the 
busy life of the capitol. 

He loved the State that he served so faithfully. He 
loved to talk of its future greatness. He knew it better 
than any man I ever met, and was more at liome in the 
assembly than in the larger field of activity to which he 
was called by an admiring constituency. He knew the 
legislature thoroughl}^ — its methods, its habits of thought — 
and no man more jealously guarded its prerogatives. He 
had the most profound respect for its authority as a 
branch of the Government and an inflexible belief in the 
ultimate rectitude of its purposes. 

Time there is indeed, and I could spend it in the 
memorjr of " Ed." Time and time again, he asked me to 
go up and stay at Potsdam, where he might show to me 
what he called "Our Great North Country." It shall 
alwaj^s be to me a matter of regret that 1 did not see the 
little village until I found it plunged in mourning the day 
of his funeral — its business places darkened and the 
counti-jside gathered in it to pay tribute to his memory. 
I Ijrought with me my eldest son, and I gave him a copy 
of the Red Book of 1912 and 1 asked him to always re- 
member what it was that brought him on his first long 
journey from home. 

I could talk through the night about Ed. MERRrrx, and 
all that 1 could say would be inadequate to express what 
I really thought of him. 1 will conclude, therefore, leav- 
ing with you this thought: "Almighty God asks nothing 
for nothing, and when we say to Him ' Thy will be done 

[45] 



Memorial Addresses: Representatu'e Merritt 

on earth as it is in heaven ' — if we mean that — if it comes 
from the heart, He responds with a balm for every 
wound and a joy to balance every sorrow, and He gives 
to us to-night in an hour of affliction abundant consola- 
tion in that almost universal belief that Divine Providence 
makes all things equal and solves for the just man the 
mystery of death as life everlasting." 

Selection by the double quartet, "Peace, Perfect 
Peace." 

Peace, perfect peace, in this dark world of sin? 
The blood of Jesus whispers peace within. 
Peace, perfect peace, by thronging duties pressed? 
To do the will of Jesus, this is rest. 
Peace, perfect peace, with sorrow surging round? 
On Jesus' bosom naught but calm is found. 
Peace, perfect peace, with loved ones far away? 
In Jesus' keeping, we are safe, and they. 
Peace, perfect peace, our future all unknown? 
Jesus we know, and He is on the throne. 
Peace, perfect peace, death shadowing us and ours? 
Jesus has vanquished death and all its powers. 
It is enough; earth's struggles soon shall cease, 
And Jesus call us to heaven's perfect peace. 

Speaker Sweet. Side by side, shoulder to shoulder, 
fighting the battles of State, stood Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., 
and James W. Wadsworth, jr. As his closest associate 
and constant counselor, I present to you at this time, Hon. 
James W. Wadsworth, jr. 



[461 



Address of Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr. 

Mr. Speaker, Members of the Legislature, Ladies, and 
Gentlemen: The invitation to say something of the life 
and public services of Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., upon this 
occasion and in this presence touches me very deeply. 
It is indeed an honor which I appreciate, and I rejoice at 
being afforded an opportunity to testify to the high char- 
acter and great achievements of that dear friend, with 
whom I was so intimately associated here in this capitol. 

So vivid and so deep is the impression he made during 
the years of that association that it seems but yesterday 
that he stood towering in the center aisle there, his voice 
reverberating through the uttermost spaces of this great 
chamber, welding the laws of New York. It seems but 
yesterday that he gathered us about him in our leisure 
hours and won and held our deep affection. It is difficult 
for us to understand that we will never again experience 
that inspiring and delightful human contact. And now 
that we long to tell the world our estimate of him, I, for 
one, realize that my poor words must fall far short of 
describing that picture of him which will reside in my 
mind as long as I shall live. 

It can not be denied that hereditj'^ and environment are 
powerful factors in the formation of character and habit 
of mind; and in order to possess an intelligent under- 
standing of Mr. Merritt, we must take into consideration 
these elements in relation to him. His forbears were of 
sturdy American stock — simple, God-fearing, self-reliant, 
typical of the early pioneers. His father — who still lives, 
honored and respected by thousands of his fellow citizens 
in his old age — has for years been a commanding figure 
in northern New York. By occupation an outdoor man, 

4093°— 16 4 [47] 



Memorial Abdresses: Representative Merritt 

who in the early days helped blaze the way through 
the northern wilderness, he transmitted to his son a vigor 
and strength of constitution remarkable even in a country 
renowned for its strong men, and that simplicity and 
directness of mental operation so characteristic of the 
early American. The father, true to the type, from early 
manhood has maintained an active and intelligent interest 
in public affairs. He has been a friend and confidant of 
leading Americans since the days of the great Civil "War, 
has held high positions of trust and power, and has been 
a leader of thought and molder of opinion in that great 
northern country in which he has lived so long and which 
he loves so well. 

It is not surprising, therefore, that the son whose 
memory we now revere drew inspiration in his early man- 
hood from the example of his sire and found himself 
equipped with the same attributes of public spirit and 
devotion to country. Born in 1860, he attained manhood 
at a time when it was still possible for him to absorb a 
vivid conception from his father and his father's neigh- 
bors of those great principles which were fought for and 
vindicated in the trying days of the sixties. He absorbed 
readily the story of sacrifice and heroism relating to those 
times, and from that story he learned the great principles 
of human liberty upon which this Republic was founded. 
Through all his active life he never ceased deriving in- 
spiration from the deeds of the generation just preceding 
him, and he never wavered in his admiration and 
reverence of the men w^ho saved the Nation. There was 
no more potent inilucnce in his life than his contact with 
those men. By their example he was inspired to that 
simple manly courage which was his predominating trait. 

Graduating from Yale College, at New Haven, Conn., 
in 1881, he joined his father at London, where the latter 
at that time was holding the high and responsible position 
of consul general of the United States. After spending 

[48] 



Address of Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr. 

a year assisting his father in that interesting and broaden- 
ing atmosphere, he returned to his home in Potsdam, St. 
Lawrence County, and immediately embarked upon that 
active career in which he later gained such distinction. 

Although actively engaged in business, he found time 
to take part in the public affairs of the community in 
which he lived. In fact, the stress and contention of 
politics and the satisfaction of public service well per- 
formed held a peculiar fascination for him, and, commenc- 
ing with his election to the St. Lawrence County board 
of supervisors, he was continually in public life until the 
day of his death. His strength of mind, his clarity of 
vision, and his integrity soon made their impression upon 
the people of St. Lawrence, and in 1902 he was elected a 
member of assembly from the district in which he resided. 
From that year up to and including the legislative session 
of 1912 his constituents, with unwavering confidence in 
him as their representative, continued to send him to the 
State capitol. 

It was in this chamber the great work of his life was 
performed. It was in this arena that he made his name 
known over the length and breadth of this great State; 
and while he was later promoted to a wider field of 
activity at the National Capitol at Washington his place 
in history rests upon the services he rendered in the 
assembly. 

So long was his service, so many and varied the legis- 
lative tasks which he undertook and carried to a suc- 
cessful completion that time will not permit upon this 
occasion an attempt upon my part to recite them all. 
With no thought of minimizing the importance of his 
eff'orts in a score of directions, it shall be my endeavor to 
set forth that achievement of his which his colleagues con- 
sidered the greatest of all and which has exercised a most 
profound effect upon the government of the State of 
New York. 

[49] 



Memorial Addresses : Representative Merritt 

It is a matter of history that tlie dawn of the new 
century was signalized by a remarkable and almost phe- 
nomenal development of the economic and industrial life 
of America. That period will go down in history as the 
one which witnessed the formation of great combinations 
of capital and gigantic organizations for the canying on 
of industry in all its branches. The intricacies of modern 
civilization seem to have made this development logical 
and therefore inevitable. This growth, however, created 
evils new and unlooked for in our civic life. So powerful 
did these organizations become that they appeared in the 
minds of many to constitute a grave danger to our form of 
government. As they grew so did the public impression 
grow, that unless a remedy was applied self-government 
would be poisoned at its source. 

When Merritt took his seat in the assembly in 1902 the 
first mutterings, as it were, of the storm which was to 
break over American politics could be heard by the dis- 
criminating ear. In later years Merritt's friends learned 
that he, almost from the day of his taking his scat in this 
chamber, saw the cloud upon the horizon and commenced 
preparing himself to take part in the solution of the 
mighty problem which he felt would confront the people 
later on. It is not necpssarj' for me to describe in detail 
the I'ise of that great wave of public sentiment which 
finally brought to bear such irresistible pressure for the 
solution of the problem of the relations existing between 
the public, on one hand, and the great public service cor- 
porations, created by the public, upon the other. We 
know now that the demand for a remedy which was fear- 
lessly and irresistibly made at that time had its justifica- 
tion in the misdeeds and abuse of power on the part of 
some who cynically disregarded the sensibilities and the 
rights of the average man. 

Those of us who served in the legislative sessions of 
1905-6 can never forget the tension and stress of those 

[50] 



Address of Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr. 

days when the storm reached its greatest fury. Some 
there were who persisted in maintaining an attitude of 
indifference, and declaring that it would blow over in 
good time. There were even some, although their num- 
ber was few, who refused to admit that there was any- 
thing genuine or important in the demand of the hour. 
The great majority of men in public life at that time, 
however, realized that mighty forces were at work and 
that something must be done to meet the sentiment of the 
people — and prevent chaos. 

It is true also that the great majority of men, buffeted 
by the contending forces and perplexed by conflicting 
counsel, were groping in the dark, conscious of their 
unpreparedness. Of all the men in the New York Legis- 
lature of those days, Merritt seemed to have the clearest 
conception of the situation, and, starting almost alone 
in his efforts, he proceeded to lay the foundation for a 
great piece of constructive legislation which we believe to- 
day has solved the problem. 

It was characteristic of Merritt's viewpoint toward life 
in general that he should believe in the power of govern- 
ment, and that he should contend that government should 
exercise its power to do a certain thing when no other 
agency is capable of doing that thing. For four years he 
had been a keen observer of the play of contending forces 
in and about the legislature and the State government. 
He weighed and analyzed the good and the bad, the useful 
and the useless, and when he had made up his mind to 
act, he knew what ought to be done and where the power 
resided. 

His first move in the direction which he had marked 
out attracted little public attention, but to those who 
knew his purpose and his mind it was of vast significance. 
During the administration of Gov. Higgins, Merritt intro- 
duced a bill in the assembly providing that all the ex- 
penses incident to the support of the then existing State 

[51] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

railroad commission should be borne by the treasurj' of 
the State instead of requiring the railroad companies to 
meet the expense of supervision, as was then the case. 
He stood almost alone in his contention. Men said, " If 
we are to discipline these corporations, why do we com- 
mence by relieving them of this comparatively light 
burden?" Merritt's answer was that the Government 
must shortlj^ assume new powers of supervision and regu- 
lation over these corporations, and in preparation for that 
day tlie Government must free itself of any sense of obli- 
gation, however remote, toward the corporations which it 
proposed to regulate. 

This act of Assemblyman Merritt, while failing of suc- 
cess for the moment, was the planting of the seed in the 
legislative mind. More and more from that time men 
listened to his proposal and came to recognize its ultimate 
wisdom. Events moved quickly. The pressure was enor- 
mous. In 1905 a special committee of the legislature was 
appointed to investigate the distribution and the sale of 
illuminating gas by public-service corporations in the 
city of New York. The work of this committee attracted 
wide attention. Merritt was one of its strongest members. 

By far the most significant act resulting from this in- 
vestigation was the drafting and final enactment of a bill 
intrusting to a State commission, known at the time as the 
" State gas commission," the function and duty of regulat- 
ing the rates charged for illuminating gas and electricity 
by all the lighting companies of the State. The strong 
hand of Merritt was readilj' seen in the provisions of this 
bill. It was his first definite proposal directed toward the 
solution of this great problem. Imperfect in manj' re- 
spects, it nevertheless amounted to a declaration on the 
part of the government of New York that henceforth it 
intended to exercise its powers. 

I remember well the gratification which Merritt de- 
rived from this acceptance of the principle which he had 

[52] 



Address of Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr. 

laid down a year before and which had met such dis- 
couragement. And I remember well the intense gratifica- 
tion whicli came to him in the following year, in 1907, 
when the newly elected governor of New York, Charles 
E. Hughes, laid such tremendous emphasis upon the 
necessity for a solution of this sort to be applied over a 
much wider field. Merritt hastened to his support, con- 
fident that through the great influence and ability of that 
exceptional executive success would come, as coine it did. 

He was one of the responsible authors of the public- 
service commissions bill of 1907. He worked in collabora- 
tion with others day after day and week after week until 
that measure was complete. His influence can be read 
in every line of it. When it was enacted into law it bore 
his name jointly with that of Senator Page. If 1 may be 
permitted to express an opinion, this law, establishing as 
it did a standard of relationship between the Govern- 
ment, representing all the people on one hand, and the 
railways, the street railways, the gas companies, and 
electric lighting companies on the other, is the greatest 
monument of the four years of the administration of 
Gov. Hughes. 

Merritt's work did not end with this achievement. 
The following year the legislature appointed a special 
committee to investigate the feasibility of bringing the 
telephone and telegraph companies under the jurisdiction 
of the commission. Merritt was one of the strong men on 
that committee and was largely instrumental in drafting 
the bill reported by that committee and almost immedi- 
ately enacted, extending the power of the public service 
commissions over the wire companies. 

The student of government will admit that Mr. Merritt, 
in inaugurating this great movement in 1905, assisting 
powerfully in its progress through 1906, 1907, 1908, per- 
formed a service for the State of New York of immeasur- 
able importance and vast significance. Throughout all of 

[53] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

that struggle, through all the varying phases of the con- 
flict in which he took part, two of his traits of character 
stood out conspicuously : First, his clear courage. He never 
faltered; he never wavered, no matter what the obstacle. 
Second, his lack of vanity. He had convictions, deep- 
rooted and sound, but he had no false pride or conceit. 
He never claimed or demanded special recognition for his 
achievement. In fact, of all eminently successful men, 
men endowed with power and subject to the temptations 
which go with it, Merritt was the least vain. His sim- 
plicity, directness, and his sense of humor saved him from 
that which has destroyed or impaired the usefulness of 
many a distinguished man. 

In order to give some idea of the tremendous and varied 
work which Merritt did in the assembly, in addition to 
the great achievement which I have attempted to de- 
scribe, it should be noted that he was first chairman 
of the committee on agriculture, then chairman of the 
committee on general laws, chairman of the committee on 
railroads, chairman of the committee on ways and means, 
which at that time carried with it the majority leadership, 
and which he held for three years; minority leader in 
1911, and finally speaker of the assembly in 1912. 

The State will not forget the great work he did in help- 
ing to revise the highway law and inaugurating the build- 
ing of improved highways through the Commonwealth. 
Nor will the State forget the three years of arduous 
service he rendered in helping to formulate the financial 
policy of the State as expressed in the appropriation bills. 
The burden he carried was enormous. Only a man of his 
great mental and physical strength could have stood up 
under it. His career in the assembly culminated in his 
election to the speakership. 

He was permitted to hold that difficult and responsible 
position for but one year. The death of his long-time 
friend, George R. Malby, left vacant the seat in Congress 

[54] 



Address of Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr. 

held by that Representative of the north country con- 
gressional district. It was inevitable that the people of 
that district should demand that Merritt represent them 
in Washington. They did so demand and he acquiesced 
and accepted an election to Congress from his district. 

I think it is accurate to say that he left Albany with 
reluctance. He felt that he was entering upon a new and 
strange field, although he deeply appreciated the honor 
and the opportunitj\ He was familiar with this atmos- 
phere here in the capital where he had spent the greater 
part of his public life, where he had impressed himself 
upon the life of the State which he loved; here were his 
intimate fi'iends — and their name was legion. He felt that 
other additional tasks awaited his efforts here; he felt that 
the State had not as yet solved the highway problem. He 
realized that the financial operations of the State were 
subject to vast improvement; that the question of taxa- 
tion, income, and expenditure needed close study and 
application. He longed to address himself to this work, 
but his sense of duty to his people at home, his gratitude 
for their loyalty and friendship, compelled him to re- 
linquish his work here and assume the duties of a national 
legislator. 

It is a matter of record that he quickly assumed a 
prominent place in the House of Representatives. 
Although a member of the minority, his strength and wis- 
dom were soon recognized by his colleagues, a fact which 
was made evident by his appointment to the great Com- 
mittee on Rules of the lower House at Washington shortly 
after he took his seat. 

He had scarcely embarked upon a career of usefulness 
and distinction in the National Congress, when, with a 
suddenness that is incomprehensible, he was attacked by 
a combination of maladies which called forth every atom 
of his gigantic strength of will and physique to combat. 
Accompanied by his faithful, loving wife, he was taken to 

[55] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

the sanitarium at Dansville, near my own liome, in Liv- 
ingston County. There he waged a battle which can never 
be forgotten by those of us, who, from time to time, were 
permitted to see him. His great frame stricken and shat- 
tered to an inconceivable degree, his mighty intellect 
never lost its clarity, his soul never lost its courage. 

For 13 months he endured physical and mental suffer- 
ing seldom deinanded of a human being. Crisis after 
crisis was surmounted through the might of his will 
power. Naturally a somewhat impatient man in the ordi- 
nary walks of life, he yielded to the necessities of his fight 
with a confiding trust and patience which was sublime. 
He knew his loving family and faithful attendant were 
struggling bravely all through these weary months to save 
him, and he set himself to help them help him. The time 
came in the autumn of 1914 when it seemed that his efforts 
and those of his loved ones had been crowned with 
victory. With indomitable courage and implicit con- 
fidence he started on his journey homeward. I shall never 
forget the day of his departure and the words he uttered 
on that occasion: " I have won my fight; I am going back 
to my people; I have work to do." 

He was renominated and reelected to Congress by a 
constituency who had known him all his life and loved 
him best. The future looked bright, and then suddenlj% 
when we were all filled with confidence that he would 
live to attain an even higher degree of usefulness and 
distinction, his malady returned in a new and unexpected 
form, and after a brief but heroic struggle he succumbed 
to the will of an all-wise Providence. 

His father is left stricken and without the sustaining 
hand of his great son in his old age; his wife and daughter 
crushed with grief. Hundreds of us, his former associates, 
have lost a dear friend, and the realization of our loss 
quickens and deepens the sympathy which we extend to 
his devoted family in this trying hour. Our consolation 

[56] 



Address of Mr. James W. Wadsworth, Jr. 

must be that we men who knew him are better men and 
this State a better State because he lived. 

Selection by the double quartet, " Beautiful Isle of 
Somewhere " : 

Somewhere the sun is shining, 

Somewhere the song birds dwell; 
Hush, then, thy sad repining, 

God lives, and all is well! 

Somewhere, somewhere, 

Beautiful Isle of Somewhere; 

Land of the true, where we live anew, 

Beautiful Isle of Somewhere. 

Somewhere the load is lifted. 

Close bj' an open gate; 
Somewhere the clouds are rifted. 

Somewhere the angels wait. 

Somewhere, somewhere, 
Beautiful Isle of Somewhere; 
Land of the true, where we live anew, 
Beautiful Isle of Somewhere. 

Speaker Sweet. With the pronouncing of the benedic- 
tion the services of the evening will close. 

Rev. Hamilton. The peace of God, which passeth all 
understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowl- 
edge and love of God and of His Son Jesus Christ, our 
Lord, and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the 
Son, and the Holj' Ghost be amongst you and remain with 
you always. Amen. 



[57] 



PUBLIC MEMORIAL MEETING, VILLAGE HALL, 
POTSDAM, N. Y., DECEMBER 14, 1914. 

An informal public meeting to pay tribute to the 
memory of the late Hon. Edwin A. Merritt, Jr., Represent- 
ative in Congress, was held in the village hall, Potsdam, 
St. Lawrence County, N. Y., on the evening of December 
14, 1914. The meeting was attended by personal friends 
and neighbors of Congressman Merritt. Hon. Clarence 
S. Ferris presided as chairman of the meeting, and 
Howard E. Thompson acted as secretary. Judge Ferris 
opened the meeting with the following remarks : 

" We have come together at this time to pay fitting 
tribute to the memory of our deceased friend. 

" For many years he had been in the public service. He 
had attained great influence with all with whom he was 
associated. His services to the State have left their im- 
press on much inaportant legislation, and our laws are 
better for his having had a part in framing them. 

" At some future time I assume appropriate services 
will be held by the House of Representatives, which will 
emphasize and commemorate the value of his public 
service. However, these services must be to some extent 
different. 

" While we, as his neighbors, appreciate his great 
service as a public servant, we think of him more as a 
friend and familiar figure in our midst, who has sud- 
denly been removed by death. It is most fitting that we 
should meet here to-night to give expression of his worth, 
not only as a public official, but as a friend whom we 
loved and whose death we mourn." 



[59] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

Dr. F. L. Dewey gave the following tribute of apprecia- 
tion of Mr. Merritt : 

" Mr. Chairman, Friends, and Neighbors : We are 
gathered here to-night to express our sincere and honest 
sorrow over the demise of Hon. Edwen A. Merritt, Jr., 
Representative of this district in Congress. To each and 
everj' one of us his death brings a sense of personal loss. 
Long and serious as had been his illness, the announce- 
ment that his spirit had taken its flight and passed on 
over the Great Divide came as a surprise and a shock. 

" To me he had always been ' Big Ed. Merritt,' tireless, 
undaunted, and invincible. Born in the foothills of our 
own Adirondacks, passing his bojdiood life in Potsdam, 
he was a simple, plain north-country gentleman. Com- 
pleting his course in our normal school, which owes its 
existence to the efforts of his father, he passed on to 
Yale University. Graduating there in due course, he sup- 
plemented his school and university training by travel 
abroad and efTicicnt and successful work in the consular 
service. 

" I first met Ed. Merritt in the fall of 1885. He im- 
pressed me then as a great big, whole-souled fellow. We 
read law together in the offices of John G. Mclntyre, and 
the association there formed led to a lifelong friendship. 
With his training and inherited tendencies it was natural 
that he should early turn his attention to the field of 
politics. His ability and fitness for public service were 
soon recognized, and once given an opportunity to prove 
his worth, his constituents never consented to his return 
to private life. 

" Ed. Merritt was an educated and cultivated man. It 
will surprise many of his friends to know that during his 
long illness he passed many hours in reading the classics. 
Nothing gave him greater pleasure than to read or to 
recite a favorite passage to his friends who came to call 
upon him. Yet he spent his life largely among men and 

[60] 



Public Memorial Meeting, Village Hall, Potsdam, N. Y. 

affairs. Never posing as an orator, lie was never a 
' victim of words nor a phrasesmith.' Never, as an edi- 
torial in the New York Sun read, was he afOicted with 
the ' pen and mauth disease.' He was simple and direct 
in thought and action; frank, truthful, and free from 
cowardice. Naturally, he had an unconscious courage. 
He was an excellent judge of men and measures, and 
never had I known a man in tliis State who, in the halls 
of legislation or in the marts of trade, won a larger or 
more loyal following. The attendance at his funeral bore 
silent testimony to this. 

" Strenuous at times as were his political contests they 
never left bitterness or revengeful feelings with him. He 
was always charitable to all, and many a poor soldier or 
a bereft widow to-day will miss the efforts which Ed. Mer- 
RiTT was wont to put forth in their behalf. Not always 
understood or appreciated by his own townsmen, among 
all the multitudes who knew him in boyhood and in man- 
hood, in private and in public life, not one can recall a 
mean, vindictive, or deceitful word. Sincere in his beliefs, 
faithful to his convictions, steadfast in his friendships, he 
was loyal to eveiy cause he espoused. His life has made 
many men happier, his example will make many better, 
and his service to his constituency and to this State will 
endure so long as our north country shall last." 

Hon. Edward A. Everett, being called upon by the 
Chair, responded as follows : 

" Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen : Putting our thoughts 
in language that will properly express our feelings toward 
a departed friend is indeed a hard task. I first became 
acquainted with Ed. Merritt about 35 years ago, from an 
accidental meeting while enjoying an outing in the woods 
on Raquette River, and our relationship ripened into a 
friendship that was mutually enjoyed. He was of the 
type of manhood that brightened with use and there was 

[61] 



Memorial Addresses: Representati\'e Merritt 

always something that linked us closer together after each 
meeting. We were interested in the business affairs of 
each other, not as actual business partners, but from a 
true feeling of a desire to help each other. It has been 
truly said that character is not made in a day; neither 
is it possible for one to become acquainted with character 
that is worth while in a short period of time. The indi- 
viduals who stand out in prominence the world over are 
the ones whose honesty and simplicity first attract you 
and whose gigantic ability to perform the tasks after- 
wards impress you. Words of praise can be used in the 
description of anybody who has ceased to exist, but truth- 
ful words describing a character that had to do with all of 
the different phases of human nature and came through 
without a scar is indeed the exception. This, however, I 
can truthfully say concerning our departed friend and 
fellow townsman, Ed. Merritt. His ambition may have 
mapped out a task that his early departure left uncom- 
pleted, but the honesty of purpose in every day's transac- 
tion is well defined in the course of his everyday life, and 
I sincerely offer him the following tribute : 

" Here is to Ed. Merritt, born in this world of trouble 
and care; dies, and he goes, he knows not where, but he 
was a thoroughbred here and he will be a thoroughbred 
there." 

Mr. Hariy M. Ingram made the following remarks : 
" Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen: It is difficult for me to 
talk upon this occasion. I can not properly give expres- 
sion to my feelings. I must be content with stating some 
personal facts. Had Congressman Merritt lived until the 
1st day of January next I would have been associated 
with him as his partner in the practice of law for six 
years. Except for the fact that Mr. Merrftt, then a mem- 
ber of the assembly, had asked me to come to Potsdam 
and form a law partnership, I would probably be practic- 
ing in another part of the State at this time. He wanted 

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Public Memorial Meeting, Village Hall, Potsdam, N. Y. 

to maintain a law office. He told me it was a desire 
which he had long entertained, and in the expectation of 
its fulfillment he had kept together the old Dart & Erwin 
and the Tappan law libraries. I went to Potsdam and 
looked over the library and met some of the people of the 
village. Finally I made up my mind to locate here, and 
I did so. Our law firm dated from January 1, 1909. Dur- 
ing the years we were together I learned to know Mr. 
Merritt as I had never known him before. I came to 
realize more than ever his great broadness of mind, the 
vastness of his intellect, and above all, perhaps, the ex- 
traordinary kindness and warmth of his most unusual 
personality. I shall always prize the recollections of my 
friendship with him. I feel that under the circumstances 
I can never regret that I came to Potsdam as I did. 

" It was perhaps my fortune to have seen Mr. Merritt 
in the performance of his duties at Albany more than 
any other person here to-night. I know the great subjects 
and works of importance to the people of the State with 
which he labored during the years, and particularly the 
latter years of his service in the assembly. He was re- 
garded as the leader not only of the assembly but by 
many the leader of the legislature. Often I have felt that 
the people of his home county did not at all appreciate 
the prominence of their representative in the legislature. 
I had this same feeling regarding the late Senator Malby. 
Malby and Merritt were indeed a strong and powerful 
combination of representatives for any county to have 
in the State legislature at the same time. No wonder the 
county of St. Lawrence became so widely known in po- 
litical and State affairs. These men had an unusual State- 
wide acquaintance. Their suggestions, advice, and coun- 
sel were sought and heeded. 

" "When Congressman Malby passed suddenly away, St. 
Lawrence County and the whole north country felt keenly 
its great loss, but was comforted in a measure in the 

4093°— 16 5 [63] 



Memorial Addresses: Representative Merritt 

thought that Mr. Merritt remained. In the death of Mr. 
Merritt, so soon after, we will feel more than ever the 
loss of Mr. Malby, and now that both are gone we have 
indeed much reason to mourn. It requires years of time 
for a county to prepare for public life two such men as 
these, strong men, influential legislators, representative 
citizens. 

" Mr. Merritt made a wonderful fight for life. He 
wanted so much to enter upon the public service again. 
His plans were all made for the future. We can rejoice 
in the fact that such a man, stricken down largely because 
of overwork in the service of the people, was permitted 
to end his days still in the service. His vast plurality at 
the November election and the great tribute rendered him 
at his funeral are worthy testimonials of the general and 
sincere esteem in which Congressman Merritt was held 
by the voters of his congressional district and his asso- 
ciates in public life." 

Mr. John L. Brown spoke as follows : 

" Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen : I knew Mr. Merritt 
very well and counted him one of my best friends. Dur- 
ing his stay in Albany I had occasion to write him several 
times. Some of my letters were on matters that seemed 
to me quite small, and I am sure must have seemed to him 
very small and trivial, but I always received a prompt 
reply. Several of these replies I prized very highly, as 
they were not cold, expressionless, typewritten letters, 
dictated by ' E. A. M.,' but were personal pen-written 
letters that make one feel that in the writer he had a 
friend worth while. 

" In the passing of Mr. Merritt 1 know I have lost, and I 
believe we all have lost, a big-hearted, loyal personal 
friend." 

Mr. Sylvester Nicolette spoke as follows : 

" Mr. Chairman: I met Mr. Merritt and began to work 
for him many years ago. He was always my good friend. 

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Public Memorial Meeting, Village Hall, Potsdam, N. Y. 

I had many business dealings with him, and my contracts 
were for many thousand dollars in labor and construction 
work. Always I found him fair in settlement and in ad- 
justing any questions which might arise. I can say the 
same also of Mr. Tappan, who was his partner in the work 
at Hannawa Falls. We never had any difficulties about 
our work. It was a great pleasure to work for such men 
as these. They always treated me squarely and paid me 
every cent owing to me for all the work I did for them. 
From my dealings with Mr. Merritt I can say of him that 
he was the most honest man I ever knew." 

Remarks were also made by Mr. John Pert, president 
of the village of Potsdam, Mr. F. L. Cubley, Dr. F. T, 
Swan, Mr. C. E. Haywood, and Mr. E. M. Perkins. 



Resolutions Adopted by the Members of the Rar of 
Potsdam on December 7, 1914 

Resolved, That the members of the bar of Potsdam feel 
deep sorrow at the untimely death of Hon. Edwin A. Mer- 
ritt, Jr. That they have long felt pride in his ability and 
power. 

That they appreciate the value of his many services and 
deeply deplore his loss. They realize that he has left a 
void that can not well be filled. 

The many public capacities in which he has acted are 
too well known to need enumeration here, and in all of 
them he has reflected credit and honor upon this com- 
munity as well as upon the State. 

Resolved, That we extend our deepest sympathy to his 
bereaved family. 

L. E. Wadleigh, 

Chairman of Committee. 
Wm. H. McCormick, 

Secretary. 

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